Chelsea set to meet with Juventus over moves for Rugani and Higuain
Maurizio Sarri has targeted a number of players from the Bianconeri this summer, with defender Mattia Caldara another who is interested in signing
Chelsea and Juventus are set to hold talks on Saturday in Nice as the Blues target moves for a number of the Serie A champions’ players.
Goal understands Chelsea CEO Marina Granovskaia will meet with Juve sporting director Fabio Paratici while Maurizio Sarri’s side prepare to face Inter in the International Champions Cup.
Sarri has targeted moves for a number of Juventus players due to his familiarity with Serie A, having already secured the arrival of Jorginho from Napoli.
A second bid of £45 million ($59m) was lodged for centre-back Daniele Rugani earlier in the week, and Chelsea are hopeful that these talks will allow a breakthrough to be made in their pursuit of the Italy international.
The Blues have already seen a £36m ($47m) bid rejected by the Bianconeri for Rugani but he remains Sarri’s primary defensive target with less than two weeks of the transfer window left to run in England.
Should Rugani prove unattainable, Chelsea will turn their attentions to his team-mate Mattia Caldara.
The 24-year-old is yet to make an appearance for Massimiliano Allegri’s side, having signed for Juve in January 2017 before being loaned back to Atalanta for 18 months in a bid to gain further experience.
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Caldara has been linked with a move away already this summer, with AC Milan reportedly keen to bring him to San Siro in a deal that would potentially see Leonardo Bonucci move in the opposite direction.
Bonucci has made it clear that he wishes to return to Turin after just one season with the Rossoneri, and as revealed by Goal, they have been exploring a potential swap deal that would involve Gonzalo Higuain.
Argentina international Higuain is surplus to requirements at Juve following the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo, and Chelsea are hopeful that Saturday’s talks could see them jump to the head of the queue in that race.
Sarri managed Higuain during his time at Napoli and is keen to bring the former Real Madrid man to west London to spearhead his attack following Alvaro Morata’s struggles in 2017-18.
Juventus have prioritised selling Higuain as they look to free up some money to spend in the final weeks of the transfer window, though they would still likely want in excess of €60m (£53.4m/$70m) for their top goalscorer from the last two seasons.